A section of veterinary officers in Masaka has raised concerns about the hike in the annual licensing fees.Veterinary Council (UVC) plans to start the enforcement of the Veterinary Practitioners (Amendment) Act 2024, which was recently passed to streamline the operations of all veterinary service providers in the country.
The new regulations require the mandatory registration of all veterinary service providers with the Uganda Veterinary Council.Veterinarians are also required to obtain an inspection certification from the National Drugs Authority (NDA).
Besides fulfilling the eligibility criteria on inspection by both the council and NDA, the practitioners are also required to pay 500,000 shillings before the relevant operation certifications are issued to them.
The new law also makes it mandatory for all attendants of the veterinary drug outlets to have professional qualifications in veterinary practices, and it imposes heavy punishments for poor handling of drugs and vaccines.
Doctor Joseph Mukisa, the private veterinary officer operating in Kyesiiga sub-county, Masaka district, describes the fees as exorbitant to them, given the other operational costs they incur daily.
He argues that while licensing is an ideal practice for improving the proficiency of service providers, the high fees in the law is unrealistic and are likely to make the services so expensive for ordinary farmers, hence affecting their productivity.
Dr Mukisa is afraid that new fees are going to discourage many practitioners, especially fresh graduates, from seeking registration, who may continue to operate clandestinely, hence compromising the standards of the service and supplies to the farmers.
Doctor John Kakulu, a Veterinary Surgeon operating in Masaka district, observes that the new law is going to transfer the heavy financial burden to the ordinary farmers who are the last consumers of the services.
He has appealed to the regulatory bodies to maintain the previous licensing fees of 250,000 shillings and instead strengthen its supervisory arm to weed out quacks, as opposed to hiking the charges.
He has cautioned the regulators against using the laws as a way of generating money, but has focused on using them to streamline the veterinary services sector, to improve the quality of life of the fathers and their productivity.
Doctor Emmanuel Kimuli, the Masaka District Veterinary Officer, has encouraged the practitioners to comply with the registration and licensing requirements, saying that their concerns will be addressed by the higher authorities.
He observes that the amendments in the law were largely meant to improve the operations of the veterinary services providers following continuous complaints from the farmers.
Doctor Jannet Ssuubi, the Operations Officer at the Uganda Veterinary Council (UVC), says they are going to organise engagement with the practitioners to better understand each other, arguing that they do not intend to harass anyone but to improve the sector. URN